How Long
by Black Shadow Fox Shaman
Summary: Kiba looked up towards the cloudy sky as the rain poured down on his form. His mind wanders to her as it did many times before. One-shot don't own naruto
1. Chapter 1

How Long Had I Loved Her

Kiba sat out in the rain. The rain matted his hair down. Looking up towards the cloudy night sky he let the rain drop in his eyes hoping they'd wash away the pain that was running through his eyes and his heart. The rain was hiding his tears, the tears he refused to shed while there were others present. Especially he held back his tears when it came to her. He loved her like nothing else and it was too late now. She was engaged to someone else. Even his love he had held back for eight years hadn't been much in against the dreams that had formed in her head about marrying the blonde headed demon vessel of the Leaf. There was no stopping it now even if he wanted to. He didn't want to hurt her by refusing to be happy for her. His smiles were fake and apparently only his teammate Shino had noticed it. Closing his eyes a heavy sigh escaped his throat. Akamaru whined softly beside him. Reaching out he scratched behind his companion's wet ears. Leaning back against the tree's trunk he was in he remembered.

_Flashback_

_Kiba was running through the woods Akamaru running beside him. The wind whipping past them made the duo feel alive and free like nothing could bring them down. He stopped scenting her scent. With a huge grin he turned slightly off his strait course and headed towards where her scent was. Had he been paying attention he would have realized that she wasn't alone. His strides came in shorter lengths as he approached the area where she was. He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard her talking to someone. She was stuttering so it must be Naruto. The inu ninja cursed his luck. Pushing down his chakra he approached the clearing and leaving Akamaru some distance away. His steps were slow and sure as he made his way up into a tree that hung over the clearing._

"_Naruto-kun," he heard her stutter._

"_What is it Hinata-chan?" the hyper-active blonde asked._

"_I…"_

_He watched Naruto come closer to her and lay a hand on her shoulder. The urge to go down there and tear that baka blonde to pieces was invading his senses like nothing else the primal urge rose up in him like a tidal wave. The intense need to go down there and claim what was his. Her face was turning red and it was making him edgy. Closing his eyes he tried to get his body to move away from the heartbreaking scene. For some reason his body wouldn't let him move anywhere. It was like he had become a permanent fixture on the tree, like an eternal Kiba ornament. He didn't want to be sitting here listening to her tell the blonde how much she liked him. Closing his eyes he sighed softly and stood and turned to leave._

"_Naruto-kun I have to tell you something…"_

_He didn't want to hear it. Just as carefully as he had come he snuck away. Akamaru greeted him with a low bark. The dog whimpered softly seeing his companions' state. _

"_Come on boy."_

_The two of them took off into the woods._

_End flashback_

That had been three days ago. Opening his eyes he turned his face once again up towards the rain. He wondered if the rain was his friend now. With a heavy sigh he looked back over the village he protected with his life. Rubbing his forehead he stood up and leapt down to the muddy ground. He didn't count on the mud in his decent because as soon as his foot hit the ground his feet came out from underneath him. Kiba's eyes widened as he landed in a big puddle of mud. He groaned in annoyance as he lay there soaking up even more rain. Sighing he rolled over and got up. With a heavy sigh he returned to his own apartment and took a shower. He stood there letting the water run down his body as he leaned against the wall. His mind was awash with confusion and a bit of pain. In a fit of anger he slammed his fist against the wall making his familiar yelp in surprise.

"Sorry boy," Kiba breathed softly.

Turning off the water he dried himself off and got into a new set of his training gear. A knock on the door made them start but he hid it well considering. He hadn't been expecting anyone. It must have been someone familiar considering Akamaru only woofed in annoyance before laying his head down on his outstretched paw. He opened the door. An unfamiliar ninja was standing there.

"Kiba Inuzuka?"

"What do you want?"

"The Hokage would like to see you, now."

Kiba nodded. He went to get his coat.

"Come on Akamaru."

His familiar barked and wagged his tail happily. The two of them leapt from roof to another as they made their way towards the Hokage's tower. The rain had lightened up a bit. Shrugging his shoulders he feet guided him to the Hokage's tower. He hopped up the steps the steps three and four at a time. When he reached the top he wasn't even out of breath. Shizune was there and smiled at the inu ninja. She waved him in. Kiba walked in and stood before the Hokage.

"You summoned me Hokage-sama?"

"Yes, Kiba. I have a mission that just involves you."

"All right."

She handed the inu ninja a scroll with mission information. Sighing softly he read over the scroll quickly.

"I'll do it."

Tsunade nodded her head.

"You'll start tomorrow morning early if that is all right with you."

Kiba just nodded. He figured it would give him time away from Hinata and his constant turmoil of feelings about her. Rubbing the bridge of his nose he walked from the Hokage's tower. Akamaru looked up at him and woofed in concern.

"It'll be all right Akamaru. I need this time away."

Akamaru shook his shaggy mane. Kiba smiled at his familiar and leapt towards his apartment. As soon as he got there he began to take out clothes for his mission. Once that was done he lay down on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. After a few moments of restlessness he flipped on his side and stared out the window until his eyelids slid shut.

Kiba woke to Akamaru's gentle nudges against his cheek with his wet nose.

"I'm up," Kiba groused.

He got up and went to take a shower. It didn't take long for him to get ready. The woods flashed by him as he ran through his home country. Akamaru was keeping up with him easily. Sighing softly he continued on. He hadn't told anyone but his mother that he was leaving. If only for a second his steps faltered. His strides didn't lessen as he continued on. His mission was to go to a village that was in Mist Country and retrieve a special herb from the town's medic ninja. He was seriously confused as to why he was sent instead of a medic ninja like Sakura. Shrugging his shoulders he looked forward. They were traveling close to Sound and that made him partially nervous. He'd never admit it out loud though that he was even remotely afraid of who he could run into while passing so close to Sound. An odd sound made Kiba start and stop. Stopping both ninja and inu they scented the air trying to gauge what was going on. The sound of howling wolves made them start. It was a hunting party from the sounds of it.

"Come on Akamaru we need to get out of here."

Akamaru whined as he backed up. Kiba jumped down beside his familiar and rested his hand on the scruff of his companion's neck. He looked around cautiously. He wondered how many were in this pack. The baying of blood lust was getting louder. Just as he was about to leap up in the nearest tree something black plowed into him. Akamaru snarled as he turned around to face the other black figures. Kiba managed to throw the offending creature off of him. They were huge wolves. Each one bore the mark of the Sound Nation. Backing up a small bit he got into a fighting stance. An evil laugh made Kiba start. A ninja walked out into the clearing. His long black hair was tied in a loose knot at the nape of his neck. His bangs were long and draped over his Sound headband. His eyes were a molten gold color. Akamaru growled at his side.

"So you're the inu ninja from the Leaf," the ninja stated calmly.

"So what about it?"

"I heard from Sasuke-sama that you were formidable opponents with your dog."

"Akamaru and I can put up a decent fight."

"Then let's test that theory shall we?"

Kiba tensed. He wondered what on earth Sasuke was doing talking about him in the first place. They were grossly out numbered and they knew it. Looking around he tried to figure out a strategy but so far nothing came to him. The other ninja was just leaning against the biggest black wolf as if he wasn't expecting much of a challenge from the inu ninja from the Leaf. Kiba felt something within him snap. This idiot Sound ninja pushed him to far this time. Had he been someone like Naruto his eyes would have bled crimson in anger. The ninja sent in his wolves. In a blur of black and white the combatants started their battles. It only took moments before all four of the wolves were dead. Kiba only had a few bite marks and a slash across his face. Blood dripped down and he didn't even care. He turned his hard gaze towards the ninja. The ninja was still smirking as he rested against the big black wolf. Kiba was furious. If someone had just slaughtered Akamaru or his family's familiars he'd kill. Flexing his hand he grabbed a kunai from his nearly empty pouch and got ready to fight.

"You're a either brave or really stupid. I'm thinking the latter."

Kiba growled underneath his breath. The two of them leapt at each other at the same time as their familiar's went for each other. They were out for blood. By the time the battle was finished the clearing was a bloody mess. Akamaru lay on top of the dead black wolf breathing steadily. Blood spattered his white coat. Kiba was against a tree trunk breathing unsteadily. His breaths were coming in heaving pants. A kunai was sticking out of his shoulder. His enemy had a broken neck laying a few feet away. He reached up and tore the kunai out of his shoulder. A hiss of pain escaped his throat. The inu ninja knew that he didn't have much left in his chakra stores to get himself very far in hopes of finding someone that could heal his wounds. Looking towards the sky he noticed the looming rain clouds. Thunder boomed ominously in the background. With a half-hearted laugh he stared up at the skies again. The sound of running footsteps made his already droopy eyes come open slightly. A flash of pink swarmed his vision and warm hands ran over his body as he passed out.

Kiba came to in a room that was white and smelled of death and medicine. He groaned as he tried to move. Turning his head to the side he saw Akamaru sleeping peacefully not to far away. Closing his eyes he sighed. He was in the care of allies if they allowed his dog in the room with him. The door opened and he slowly opened his eyes. The doctor was Sakura much to his shock. She came in and checked over his charts.

"You're finally awake Kiba," she said softly without looking up.

"How did I get back?"

"Thankfully Tsunade sent me and two others out after you."

"Why?" he croaked softly.

"We got a message a few hours after you left that there was a rouge sound ninja that commanded wolves looking for you."

"He told me Sasuke mentioned me."

He saw her flinch at the mention of the Uchiha's name. He wondered why even after all he had done to them she still held onto her love for him. The inu ninja realized that maybe he was just as foolish as she was when it came to loving someone. "What about the mission?"

"We sent someone else after it so don't worry about it."

"I guess I failed at this huh?" he asked ruefully.

"No, Kiba you didn't."

Sakura put the charts back and pulled up a chair beside his bed. She looked in her eyes and they saw the sadness in the other's eyes.

"She's been here everyday checking on you," Sakura stated matter-of-factly.

Kiba looked into her intense green eyes and turned his head away knowing exactly who the pink haired medic ninja was talking about.

"At least tell her how you feel Kiba before you regret not even trying."

"She's already told Naruto she likes him…"

"You really are blind aren't you?" she stated softly.

He turned to look at the medic ninja. Now he only saw pity in her eyes. "Seeing you in the state you were in when we came back nearly made her heart stop."

"I'm just her teammate."

"If that's all you see then I feel sorry for both of you."

"You have no room to talk," he snapped angrily. "You still cling to Sasuke's memory like it was your life line."

He realized he had gone to far that time. Some part of him wanted to take it back and undo the hurt that was there that caused the pain. Sakura looked at him sadly.

"At least I told him how I felt, and he didn't feel the same."

Sakura rose and turned to take her leave. The inu ninja felt like an ass. She was just trying to help but he bit her head off about it. Her hand was on the door when she stopped. "Some causes even if their results aren't what you wanted are always worth the effort Kiba."

The medic nin walked out the door and it shut softly behind her. Akamaru woofed softly as he moved towards the bed and rested his head on the bed. Reaching out he placed his hand on his companion's head and stroked behind his ears.

"I really messed up didn't I?"

Akamaru whined softly. Stroking his head one last time Kiba turned on his side so he was facing the open window and his back facing the door. A hiss of pain escaped his lips as he laid there allowing the pain to subside a small bit. Closing his eyes he drifted back to sleep.

Sometime he heard his door open again. For a moment he thought it was Sakura again and he'd apologize for his actions earlier. When a familiar scent hit his nose he froze. His mind wouldn't process or work correctly as he heard her slow footsteps pad over to where Akamaru was and patted the dog's head. She moved around to the other side of the bed and knelt down so she was facing him. Her arms were folded on the bed and her chin rested on her forearm. She smiled softly at him.

"How are you feeling Kiba-chan," she asked softly.

"A few places still hurt."

"I'm glad your okay."

"I've gone through worse and survived," he tried to joke.

Her smile faltered. His small smile vanished as he saw the worry in her eyes. Reaching forward he ran his fingers over her face. She started for a moment but leaned into his gentle touches.

"What is it Hinata?" he asked softly.

"I was so worried about you."

"Hey," he said softly. "I'm here. I won't leave unless I have to. I love you too much to allow death to take me so easily."

He watched her stiffen at his words. The inu ninja closed his eyes waiting for the rejection that was sure to come from his declaration. Her cool finger running gently over his markings made his eyes come open with a start. She was smiling one of those rare smiles he was sure that only Naruto was supposed to get, but here she was giving him that loving look.

"Hinata…"

She rose a small bit and looked him in the eyes.

"When were you going to tell me?" she asked softly.

"I…" he started.

"When you're out of the hospital we'll discuss this all right?" she asked softly.

He could only nod dumbly as she rose and planted a light kiss on his forehead and one more gently on the lips. He jerked back his eyes wide. There was a beautiful flush dusting her cheeks. Hope rose in him for the first time in a long time.

"How long have you been holding it back?" she asked softly.

"Eight years," he whispered softly.

She nodded her head and smiled softly.

"We'll talk in the morning."

Kiba nodded and watched her walk away. The door softly clicked behind him and he fell in a peaceful sleep for once in a long time. Maybe things would work out for the best this time. Maybe one day they'd marry and have children of their very own. A stupid grin appeared on his face as he drifted off, but he knew that they would have to get past this first hurdle before he could even hope for a good future with her. Knowing that it was a start he'd give it everything he had knowing that he wanted this to work for them. Outside the clouds rolled away allowing the stars to twinkle brightly in the backdrop and the moon smiled down upon the sleeping inu ninja.


	2. Chapter 2

It had been two months since Hinata and Kiba made up

It had been four months since Hinata and Kiba made up. It turned that Hinata hadn't even been engaged to Naruto and that had all been in his head. The day that he had witnessed them speaking, she had been there to tell Naruto that her heart belonged to Kiba. They were currently together. It wasn't odd to see them together just walking side by side holding hands and sneaking kisses in dark corners. Naruto and Ayame hooked up sometime after the two of them did. The blonde was happy and in love. A few months in their relationship they were summoned to Tsunade's office. Kiba yawned tiredly as he leaned against the wall waiting for the Hokage. Hinata was leaning her head against his shoulder. Akamaru was laying down a short distance away. The huge dog yawned baring his fangs before laying his head on his outstretched paws. The sound of the door opening made them look up. Sakura walked out. Her face was sad and she tiredly ran her fingers through her hair.

"Sakura?"

The girl gave them a sad smile as she walked away. Kiba and Hinata looked at each other in confusion. Shizune came forward summoning the pair into the Hokage's room. Tsunade had her hands folded in front of her. She didn't even notice their entrance. The Hokage looked worn out.

"Hokage?" Hinata started.

She looked up at them in confusion but then smiled tiredly.

"I'm glad the two of you are here. I have a mission for the two of you."

"Tsunade-sama what's wrong with Sakura?"

"She will be joining you in this mission."

Tsunade handed each of them a scroll. "Study the scroll and then be ready to leave in two days time."

They looked at each other in confusion. Normally they were supposed to read then the Hokage would explain about any questions they had about it.

"Hokage what if we…" Hinata started.

"If you have any further questions ask Sakura."

They both were confused, but they nodded and rose. If Sakura was that sad about this then they knew it wasn't going to be an easy mission, and probably a stressful one. There was a bad feeling hanging in the air about the entire thing.

"Well we should head home to see what this mission is about."

Hinata agreed with her boyfriend. The pair had moved into Kiba's apartment despite the protests of the entire Hyuuga Clan. Only Neji saw fit to give them a chance even though he didn't think much of Kiba to begin with. The anxious male Hyuuga got over it and let them be. The two of them got home and sat down on their couch side by side. Kiba unrolled his scroll carefully. The name on the scroll made him wince. He knew now why Sakura was so sad when she came out of the room. Going through the details carefully he accessed that they were going to either capture him and bring him back, or the option that they kill him which Kiba doubted very much. Even if Sasuke was an emo ninja he was still powerful. With the Sharingan and the curse mark at his disposal Sasuke was an aggressive fighter. He wondered absently why Naruto wasn't coming on this trip.

"Do you think there is a reason that Naruto-san or Sai-san aren't going with us?" Hinata asked softly.

"Naruto's on a mission right now. I don't know where Sai is."

She nodded hesitantly. There was so much that was being left unsaid about the actual mission. There must be something that was going on that they were missing. It was as if Tsunade knew exactly were Sasuke was going to be.

"I have a bad feeling about this," she stated calmly.

"So do I."

The two of them weren't so sure it was best that they go on this mission with Sakura, but they had to obey their Hokage's wishes. Sakura was going to be put the test on this mission. There was something going on and neither of them liked it one bit. Most missions to bring back the missing Uchiha went down horribly and more often than not someone on the team died in the foolish hopes and pursuit of the Uchiha. Kiba remembered all too well what happened the last time they'd been sent on a mission to get back the Uchiha. He and Akamaru still bore the scars from that battle with the snake nins double headed lackey. The memories sent shivers running down his spine. Even thinking about wasting his time even trying to bring that ungrateful brat back made Kiba sighed in annoyance wondering when they'd let that traitor be. When the time was right Kiba figured Sasuke would come back on his own, or never come back which ever the Uchiha wanted.

"We're leaving tomorrow so we should get some sleep."

Hinata nodded knowing the next day was going to be a long one and the mission in general a tough one. She didn't sleep much that night. The two of them curled up on their bed and drifted to sleep. The next three days found the three of them running through the forest. The trees flashed past them like green and brown blurs. There was nothing but silence between the three of them even three days later. The silence was weighing down on them but no one knew how to breech the silence without making the silence more uncomfortable. Sakura was running ahead of the pair.

"So Sakura were are we going to start looking?"

"Tsunade told me to start looking in the Sound Nation, obviously," she said with a huff.

"Then Sound it is I guess," Kiba stated dryly.

Their pace picked up quickly. Kiba looked over his shoulder at Hinata wondering why they were pacing themselves like this. She only looked back worriedly at him before keeping her eyes forward. It was almost as if Sakura knew where she was going. Hinata didn't even want to contemplate that Sakura had been fraternizing with the enemy because is all honesty that's what Sasuke was an enemy. He made himself such when he left the Leaf Village behind, and the day that he nearly killed Naruto and Sakura. Sakura suddenly stopped and tensed then shook it off and continued on their trek.

"Sakura what was that?" Hinata inquired.

"I thought I felt something but it wasn't anything to worry about."

Kiba looked at her suspiciously knowing something was up.

"Sakura are you working with Sasuke?"

She laughed humorlessly as she ran.

"Sasuke only sees me as an annoyance and burden. So no I don't work with Sasuke on anything. I haven't seen him since that day Naruto and I fought him."

"Then what was that stopping for?"

"We're being followed, but who I can't figure out."

"Why didn't you say something sooner?" Kiba barked in annoyance.

"Because I wasn't sure," she snapped at the inu ninja.

Akamaru whimpered softly. Kiba looked at his dog and they silently communicated. Kiba looked towards the sky and nodded his head.

"We need to find somewhere to stop or we're going to get our rear ends wet."

Before anyone could move a big fat drop plopped down on his nose. "We better hurry."

Kiba was about to move forward but was stopped by the point of a sword in his face. His eyes traveled up the glinting katana and met with familiar dark eyes. They were emotionless as ever before. Kiba didn't move an inch knowing that if the Uchiha wanted to then he could and would kill him in an instant if he gave him a reason to.

"You should tell that foolish Hokage that she needs to stop wasting lives to try and bring me back."

Akamaru lunged for the Uchiha. Sasuke easily dodged and knocked the dog away. The white dog rose and shook himself. He started growling dangerously. Sasuke moved forward in a blur knocked Kiba on his rear with his katana piercing his shoulder. The Uchiha's foot was stationed on his chest to keep him pinned to the forest floor. "Call off your mutt Inuzuka before I kill him."

"Akamaru back off," Kiba hissed.

The white dog moved closer to Hinata and stopped growling. A soft whimper escaped him. Sasuke yanked the sword from his shoulder and took a step back. The rain started to really come down in torrents of fat drops soaking the Leaf nins friend and foe alike. Kiba rose to his knees. Hinata rushed to his side along with Akamaru.

"Sasuke?" Sakura called.

The raven haired man turned towards her. Their eyes met.

Sakura felt the rain pounding down around her. Her eyes were hard emerald stone glaring heatedly at the last remaining Uchiha standing before her. His eyes were a dark onyx and glaring just as heatedly. She assumed a fighting stance. Kiba and Hinata were behind her kneeling. Kiba was holding his wounded arm. His Akatsuki cloak was sticking to his body. Sakura knew that this was going to end badly for her small team. If she could convince Sasuke to let Kiba and Hinata go then she'd stay and distract Sasuke. Sakura was so distracted that she wasn't able to react in time to dodge the swipe of his katana. She stumbled backwards but caught her self in time to catch his blade between the palms of gloved hands. A shock ran up and down her arms making her wince in pain. Blood began to trickle down her arms as the blade dug into the soft pads of her hands. Even with her death pending on the pressure that he was pushing down with, she still stared defiantly at him.

"Get out of here the both of you," she snapped. "This is between him and me."

Kiba rose unsteadily to his feet bringing Hinata with him. He kept his body between his fiancé and this rogue Uchiha as he backed up. Sakura was going to die here, and she knew it. Inwardly the inu nin was cursing Tsunade for even thinking of sending them on this mission. There was nothing to be gained by wasting nins lives in foolish pursuit of this self centered Uchiha. Even if the Uchiha did come back the Elders would surely condemn the Uchiha to death for the deaths of so many Leaf nins.

"Didn't bring Naruto this time for protection Sakura?" he taunted.

"Naruto has more important things to do then to protect me."

"You've grown a back bone have you?"

Sakura just smirk as she pushed chakra into her arms and forced him to take a step backwards. Their feet squished in the mud. He pulled back his katana. In a swift instant the ground began to shake underneath Sasuke's feet as it up heaved. He dodged backwards. Looking around with his Sharingan blazing he was trying to find the pink haired nin. Her chakra seemed displaced as if she were trying to hide it and show it as being somewhere else at the same time. His mind at first though of shadow clone jutsu, but he knew better this was something else all together. Sasuke wondered if she'd learned a new jutsu since the last time they'd met.

"Interesting jutsu you have there Sakura."

There was no reply. He just smirked knowing that she had to be around here somewhere.

Sakura was crouching down beside Kiba and Hinata. She was motioning for the two of them to go back to the Leaf and declare this mission as a failure. Both nins were even reluctant to even think about that option. They weren't going to loose another friend to this rouge Uchiha.

"We can't leave you behind Sakura," Hinata persisted.

"It's best you do Hinata," she replied with a sigh. "He's not going to stop because I have something that intrigues him."

"Sakura you can't use that jutsu," Hinata pleaded.

"I don't intend to."

Sakura rose gracefully intending to finish this as quickly as possible. The two backed up slowly knowing that Sasuke should keep his attention on Sakura. Kiba cursed softly as he picked Hinata up and placed her astride Akamaru's back.

"Get her out of here boy," he growled under his breath.

His familiar whined softly and nudged Kiba's chest. He pushed the dog's nose away and sent the command to run. When he was sure they were a good distance away and still running he turned to look at Sakura.

"Don't sacrifice yourself Kiba," she whispered. "Not for me anyway. Follow her and stay safe."

"Sakura…"

"You have a future with her Kiba keep it that way."

"Sakura you can't take him out by yourself."

"I don't intend to. I'm just going to give him a run for his money is all."

"You're planning on dying anyway aren't you?"

"If it happens it happens. We're ninja and that's the way of life."

"Sakura it doesn't have to be like that!"

"It's all right Kiba don't keep her waiting."

Sakura turned her back to the inu nin signaling the end of this conversation. Kiba cursed softly as he rose and followed his familiar back towards the Leaf village. He didn't get far when the entire forest erupted in an explosion of fire. The inu nin knew that Sakura had more than likely lost her last battle against the Uchiha. Closing his eyes he paused only for a second before leaping to catch up with his fiancé and inu partner. They made the slow trek back to the Leaf with heavy hearts. The entire village was silence once word reached them of the medic nins sudden demise on the mission. The Hokage kept quiet except for a select few that were allowed to know, knew who had caused their pink haired medics death. The memorial for her had been short and sweet. Her name was placed upon a stone of the fallen nins with the highest honors. The entire village had been in attendance to lay her to rest. For some time Naruto had to be subdued from going after Sasuke, but not much was said about such matters.

Months laters

Hinata sat in a small room staring at herself in a full length mirror. Her white dress shimmered and shined under the dull light of the room. She allowed her thoughts to wander as she brushed out imaginary wrinkles in the white fabric. She was a bit nervous and yet again sad. Sakura had sacrificed herself so that she and Kiba would have a chance to have this day. Everyone assumed that Sakura and Sasuke died together in their final confrontation but she knew better. Kiba suspected the two of them were very much alive as well. Had Sasuke really wanted to kill Sakura and them he would have done so when he'd had a chance. He must have just been after Sakura. She'd been hiding something from them all. Secretly she was happy for Sakura wherever she was at this point in time. Despite everything the two of their names was put up on the wall dedicated to all the fallen nins. Even though on missions there were whispers of seeing the pair walking through other villages.

"Hinata it's time," her father called.

She sighed softly and headed for the alter to marry the man she loved.The wedding was a beautiful affair. During the entire thing she'd felt as if she were being watched by powerful eyes outside of those invited. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew that those powerful eyes were green and red respectively. When she reached for her bag to take with her on their honeymoon her suspicions were confirmed. A gift lay on the bed with a small music note in symbol of the sound on the tag. Inside was a scroll that gave them unlimited access for the two alone to move through Sound during missions. And a note that simply read;

_One day Sound and Leaf will be allies._


End file.
